The prefecture of Karditsa is in the south-west part of Thessaly and is the smaller of the four prefectures of Thessaly. On its western side are the mountains of Agrafa and Pindos with amazing mountainous landscapes and on the other side rest the fertile valleys. A lot of rivers run across the prefecture that nourish the ground and irrigate the valley. Discoveries in all the prefecture testify that the region was inhabited since 6.000 B.C. Because of its geographic position it was the meeting point of populations and cultures. The region was a district of the ancient Thessaliotida that with Fthiotida, Istieotida and Pelasgiotida constituted the Thessalian Quad, a early type of alliance. Three cities of the region are also reported in Homer in Iliad because they took part in the Trojan war. At the Byzantine period the region had a lot of intruders. From that times are saved a lot of monuments mainly churches and monasteries and the important Byzantine castle of Fanari. From the 15th century the Turks move in and exploit the fertile Thessalian land. Remarkable was the contribution of the people in the war for freedom in 1821. It was finally free with the treaty of Thessaly in 1881. The years of liberation follow the fights of the farmers with the landlords for fair distribution of the land with highlight the rebellion in Kileler in 1910. In the 2nd world war the participation of the population in the resistance was big with characteristic example the allied airport that functioned in the upland of Nevropoli and Karditsa was the first city that was released in Europe. The city of Karditsa was founded during the Ottoman domination and was seat of the Turkish army. In 1822 a plague decimated the population but after the liberation in 1881 it was reborn once again to an important commercial centre.
